Kate Mulgrew

Kate Mulgrew Biography

Katherine Kiernan Mulgrew, or Kate Mulgrew, was born on April 29, 1955. She grew up in Dubuque, Iowa, being the oldest girl in an Irish Catholic family of 8. When Kate, as a 12-year-old, expressed an interest in acting, her mother, Joan, brought home biographies of great actresses and sent Kate to summer acting schools. At age 17, she left home and traveled to New York City to study acting. At New York University, she was accepted into Stella Adler s Conservatory. At the end of her junior year, she left the university to commit herself full time to her craft. Her early career included portraying Mary Ryan for two years on the ABC soap opera "Ryans Hope" (1975) while also playing the role of Emily in the American Shakespeare Theatre production of "Our Town" in Stratford, Connecticut. When Kate was only 23, she played Kate Columbo in a series created especially for her, "Mrs. Columbo" (1979). In this series, she was playing the wife of one of televisions most beloved detectives, Lt. Columbo. While a critical success, the series was canceled after two seasons. Kate also starred in several feature films, such as Lovespell (1981), A Stranger Is Watching (1982) with Rip Torn, Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985) and Throw Momma from the Train (1987) with Danny DeVito. In 1981, she traveled to Europe to film the ABC miniseries "The Manions of America" (1981) with Pierce Brosnan. About that time, she married theater director Robert H. Egan and, a few years later, she had two sons: Ian Thomas and Alexander James. In the drama series, "Heartbeat" (1988), Kate played Dr. Joanne Springsteen, the head of a medical clinic. However, in series such as: "Murphy Brown" (1988), "Murder, She Wrote" (1984), "St. Elsewhere" (1982) and "Cheers" (1982), she only had guest roles. In 1993, Kate separated from her husband, Robert H. Egan, with whom she had been married for 12 years. In 1995, the divorce became final, and she was on the verge of having to sell her house (and move into an apartment in Westwood) when something incredible happened. She had been called to resume a role in a television series after the original actress, Geneviève Bujold, left two days into filming. What she did not know then was that this role was going to become her most famous one. The role in question was Captain Kathryn Janeway in "Star Trek: Voyager" (1995). At the moment, she played Katharine Hepburn in the play "Tea at Five" on some stages in the United States.

Was a friend of the late John Kennedy Jr. and attended his funeral with husband Timothy Hagan.

Was initially turned down for the role of Capt. Janeway on "Star Trek: Voyager" (1995) , in favour of Geneviève Bujold. When Bujold backed out of the project two days into shooting, Mulgrew again auditioned for the role, and won it!

Husband Tim Hagan ran as the Democratic Candidate for Governor of Ohio in 2002, but lost the 5 November 2002 election.

When cast for the role of Captain Janeway, Mulgrew asked that the characters first name be changed from Nicole to Kathryn. The producers agreed.

The John R. Maxim novel "Abel Baker Charlie" has a character with her name.

Her character on "Star Trek: Voyager" (1995) , Captain Kathryn Janeway, is regarded by fans as having Bipolar disorder because of her erratic actions. Ms. Mulgrew said she blames the writers.

Kathryn Janeways character was based on a feminist writer Elizabeth Janeway.

Husband Tim Hagan proposed to her on the set of "Star Trek: Voyager" (1995).

Owns/owned a chocolate colored labrador called Gracie.

Parents: Joan Virginia and Thomas James Mulgrew

Has a home in Brentwood, California.

She is good friends with fellow "Star Trek" alumnus John de Lancie ("Q").

Kate Mulgrew Quotes

The minute theres a nip in the air, the fires lit and the brandy is poured.

Life is sacred to me on all levels. Abortion does not compute with my philosophy.

Execution as punishment is barbaric and unnecessary. [When speaking of the death penalty.]

A lot of her is me. Ive had this broad under my belt for five years. I own her - and nobody can tell me that I dont own her. I love every single dimension and component of her being. Her nobility, her flawed character, her laughter, her love of the absurd, her love of the unknown, her love of science... Ive loved her great heart, her formidable spirit, her guts. She has a much better mind than mine, and a gifted imagination as well, but shes a little prickly, and certainly not without ego. She has this profound sense of humanity: she can talk to anybody and they listen.

I have a very rich and wonderful personal life, and at its core are my sons. I will tell you very frankly that I have missed them badly in these five years.... But what were talking about is a block of time Ive missed now with them. Years when nurturing was crucial, I think to their self -esteem. The kind of nurturing that comes without conditions or contingencies. The kind of nurturing that is so simple and so basic to human nature, regarding this relationship between mother and son. We missed it.

I think people think Im accessible. Im never treated as a star, either by fans or other actors, and I like it like that. I dont get the star treatment. I think that means Im a good actor. They acknowledge me as a human being, and to me, thats invaluable, because thats exactly what I am!

When I joined [Voyager] at the eleventh hour, we had nothing but hair problems. Short? Long? With a hairpiece? Without a hairpiece? All the concerns were about my hair--the hair being the trademark of the woman, right? Finally, we got all that settled but I think there was really something else going on. I think they were nervous about having a woman as captain but they couldnt be as general as to say, `Were just nervous about her. So its best to pick something--like hair!...

About her years on Star Trek: Im proud of it. It was difficult; it was hard work. Im proud of the work because I think I made some little difference in women in science. I grew to really love Captain Janeway, and out of a cast of 9, Ive made 3 great friends, I managed to raise 2 children. I think, "Its good. I used myself well. (31 August 2005)

"I would consider playing Janeway in a movie, but not on television. Would I play Janeway again knowing what I know about the experience? Yes, I think I would. Im really so proud of what I did. I dont think Ive met anyone who worked as hard as I did during those seven years, except maybe Patrick Stewart , and maybe not even Patrick because he wasnt raising two children on his own. I proved myself to myself". (Sept/Oct 2006, Star Trek Magazine issue #1)

On the best and worst part about playing a Star Trek captain: "The best thing was simply the privilege and the challenge of being able to take a shot at the first female captain, transcending stereotypes that I was very familiar with. [I was] able to do that in front of millions of viewers. That was a remarkable experience - and it continues to resonate. The downside of that is also that it continues to resonate, and threatens to eclipse all else in ones long career if one does not up the ante and stay at it, in a way that may not ordinarily be necessary. I have to work at changing and constantly reinventing myself in a way that probably would not have happened had Star Trek not come along. I knew that going in, and I think that all of the perks attached to this journey have been really inexpressively great. So the negatives are small." (Sept/Oct 2006, Star Trek Magazine issue #1)